1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to an outdoors umbrella, and more particularly to an outdoors umbrella incorporated with a solar lighting system securely for providing illumination by utilizing solar energy.
2. Description of Related Arts
Outdoors umbrellas have been proved to be extremely popular among those frequently expose to outdoor environment. In the daytime, a typical outdoor umbrella may be utilized as a temporary shelter so that people or instruments under the umbrella are protected from high temperature or vigorous sunlight. Moreover, depending on the material by which the umbrella fabric is fabricated, even in cloudy or rainy weather, the outdoors umbrella may be utilized as a rain shelter or wind shelter. On the other hand, the typical outdoors umbrella is adapted to incorporate with a lighting system wherein a plurality of illuminating units are mounted on the awning ribs for providing a predetermined degree of illumination to a lighting zone defined as the area under the umbrella fabric. Therefore, people may utilize the outdoors umbrella with the lighting system in a variety of outdoors activities during nighttime, such as barbecuing, camping, outdoors gathering, or other events which involve considerable outdoors exposure at night.
The very advantage and convenience of the typical outdoors umbrella, however, do not shelter its disadvantages. It is the feature that the umbrella is capable of being utilized as a light source in an outdoors environment that renders its desirability to locate close to an external power source. Yet in an outdoors environment, the external power source, at least in the sense of the most typical power source for lighting systemxe2x80x94electrical power source, cannot be guaranteed. One might utilize a rechargeable battery as the power source, but an additional step of charging the battery is inevitably needed. Very often, charging the battery can only be taken place when the umbrella is idle. Therefore, for example, when the user of the umbrella forgets charging the battery, the lighting system would not work on the next day. Sometimes, where the rechargeable battery cannot be conveniently detached from the outdoors umbrella, charging the battery would mean allocating extra space to store or to place the outdoor umbrella while the battery is being recharged.
The mounting arrangement of most of the outdoors umbrellas represents another problem. A considerable numbers of outdoors umbrellas have their lighting system mounted insecurely or in such a manner that the lighting system is functionally incompatible with the normal operation of the outdoor umbrellas themselves. As result, the performance of the respective lighting system is far from satisfactory. For example, during folding and unfolding operations of the outdoors umbrella, the awning ribs thereof may accidentally destroy the illuminating units of the lighting system. Since such outdoors umbrellas are designed for use in outdoors environment, as a result secure mounting of the illuminating units are of utmost importance. If the lighting system is so insecure that, when subject to certain outdoors phenomenon, such as against a sudden strong wind, the lighting system is incapable of safely or unstably operating, it would not only cause disruption to the activities in which it uses, but also harm to the users, especially those standing or sitting within the lighting zone.
Last but not least, the typical lighting system of the outdoors umbrellas tend to be immovable in the sense that the illuminating units are permanently affixed on the awning ribs so that the illuminating directions are limited by the orientation and movement of the awning ribs. As a result, where the outdoors umbrella needs to be inclinedly supported on the ground in order to shield a particular direction, or partially opened for a particular purpose, the lighting system could not be satisfactorily operated.
A main object of the present invention is to provide an outdoors umbrella which incorporates with a solar lighting system for providing illumination utilizing solar energy as an external energy source. Thus, the solar lighting system is environmentally friendly and economical to operate.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an outdoors umbrella with a solar lighting system, wherein the electrical operation of the solar light system is substantially unaffected by the folding and unfolding operation of the outdoors umbrella so that it is capable of fully operating while the outdoors umbrella is partially or inclinedly erected.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an outdoors umbrella with a solar lighting system which does not alter the original structural design of the outdoors umbrella, so as to minimize any potential risk of damage to the solar lighting system while the outdoor umbrella is folding or unfolding.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an outdoors umbrella with a solar lighting system which is capable of collecting solar energy while being exposed to sunlight to convert into electrical energy for recharging a power source to the illuminating units whenever necessary.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an outdoors umbrella comprising a solar lighting system, wherein no complicated mechanical and electrical structure and mechanism is required to incorporate with the outdoors umbrella so as to minimize the manufacturing and related cost of the present invention.
In order to accomplish the above objects, the present invention provide an outdoors umbrella, comprising:
an awning frame defining a shadowing area thereunder;
a supporting frame comprising a supporting shaft having an upper portion connected to the awning frame; and
a solar lighting system, comprising:
a solar energy collector mounted on top of the awning frame for collecting solar energy;
a light support, which is adjustably mounted along the supporting shaft at a position within the shadowing area of the awning frame, comprising a plurality of supporting arms radially extended from the supporting shaft; and
a plurality of illuminating units each comprising an illuminator electrically connected to the solar energy collector through the awning frame and a coupling joint connecting the illuminator to the respective supporting arm in a movably suspended manner such that by selectively adjusting a position of the light support along the supporting shaft, the illuminators are suspendedly self-repositioned for maximizing a light coverage area within the shadowing area.
These and other objectives, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, the accompanying drawings, and the appended claims.